Isle of Man TT Revisited

Subaru retraces its route at a more leisurely pace.

Last year, Subaru took a stock STI piloted by rally driver Mark Higgins and set a course record for a car around the famed 38-mile circuit on closed public roads with a lap speed of 115.4 mph in 19 minutes and 34 seconds. Higgins, a Manx native, also made viral video history with a lurid slide early in one of his practice runs with R&T videographer Chris Cantle on board.

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This year, Subaru returned, but with a small squadron of BRZ coupes, including one specially prepared for Higgins to near rally spec, not to break the record, but to make some high speed reconnaissance laps on the closed course before the bikes were released. Or that was a plan at least.

Isle of Man TT Revisited

We were scheduled to be part of that high speed entourage when rain intervened, postponing the main races on the Friday to Saturday and scrubbing the chance to have a go at the challenging circuit, albeit at a pace somewhat off the previous year's record run.

Isle of Man TT Revisited

Still, taking a van tour of the track and later retracing the route in the left-hand BRZ on right-hand drive roads open to the public, was an eye opening experience. In normal traffic, it takes about 54 minutes to cover the 38 miles at an average speed of 42 mph. The fastest bikes, which hit speeds in excess of 200 mph on some stretches, lap the circuit in 17 minutes at average speed of over 130 mph.

Isle of Man TT Revisited

While the BRZ lacks the all-wheel-drive surefootedness of the STI, it still proved its mettle in the unrestricted sections, thanks to its low center of gravity from its boxer engine, responsive steering, and its neutral to slight understeering attitude. You can make the tail hang out, but you have to provoke the car to make it step out and its easily gathered up. We also had a chance to fling the car about on a closed circuit on an old World War II-era runway on the north part of the island, as well as take thrill rides with Higgins both on the circuit and a closed rally loop up in the mountains.

Isle of Man TT Revisited

Two things stand out about the TT—the sheer length of the course, which actually first hosted car races before switching over to bikes—and the way that death is accepted among competitors and tourists (TT stands for Tourist Trophy), attracted to this most demanding of circuits. In most major motorsports event, fatalities are shocking primarily because they are relative rare. On the Isle of Man, competitors die almost every year and the number of bike accidents among visitors is usually double or triple that number. Touring the circuit even at normal highway speeds, you see the dangers from the rock walls, trees and steep drops over the mountain course are an ever present reminder of even how the smallest errors can have the largest consequences.

Isle of Man TT Revisited

Subaru has one more year on its three-year deal to provide course cars to the TT, is there yet another record run in the offing next year? Stay tuned.

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